Austin Wayne Self focused on fourth Charlotte Truck Series start

Looking to recover from an engine failure last weekend at Kansas Speedway, NASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck Series (NGOTS) veteran Austin Wayne Self (@AustinWSelf) heads to Charlotte (N.C.) Motor Speedway hoping to bounce back and earn his second top-10 finish of the season in Friday night’s North Carolina Education Lottery 200.

Despite the misfortune in Kansas, Self heads to Charlotte embracing the speed his No. 22 GO TEXAN | AM Technical Solutions Chevrolet Silverado has showcased this season. The Austin, Texas native credits the hard work of crew chief Eddie Troconis and his AM Racing team for the uptick in performance as the season has marched on.

“I’m looking forward to the opportunity to put ourselves near the front of the field on Friday night,” said Self. “We’ve had a lot of speed in our trucks this season, in particular, the last two races but unfortunately we don’t have much too show for it.

“I’m really proud though of the work Eddie (Troconis, crew chief) and the guys have put forth in the shop.

Whether it’s a good week or a bad week, there’s nothing but determination to make sure we’re putting the best truck on the track as possible.

“Hopefully, things go our way in Charlotte, and we can get our solid finishes back on track.”

Self invades Charlotte Motor Speedway looking to make his fourth start in the Queen City and better a track-best 12th place finish in 2017.

“Charlotte is a pretty cool place to race,” added Self. “It’s not the traditional mile and a half track, but its unique layout is something that I feel like suits my driving style. There’s a bunch of different lanes to run even though it’s narrow, but you can run from the bottom to the top.

“Another part to Charlotte success is tire conservation. The racing surface is pretty abrasive on tires, which is a big part of running up front at the end of the race.”

The Texas Department of Agriculture’s GO TEXAN program and AM Technical Solutions will support Self in his 69th career start.

GO TEXAN, celebrating its 20th Birthday this year, represents Texas agri-business on state, national and international levels by building recognition with the GO TEXAN mark.

Along with its signature mark in the shape of Texas, GO TEXAN celebrates, promotes and supports the business savvy and plainspoken grit Texas agriculture is known for throughout the world.

Don’t mess with Texas, CForce Bottling Company, Flying Circle and Kreuz Market will serve as associate partners in the eighth race of the year.

In 68 NGOTS races, the 2015 ARCA Menards Series Rookie of the Year has one top-five (second at Daytona 2017) and five top-10 finishes. The Texan maintains an average finish of 18.3 during his three years of competition.

The Austin, Texas native is nestled 18th in the championship standings with 16 races remaining.

For more on Austin Wayne Self, please visit awsracing.com, like his Facebook page (Austin Wayne Self) or follow him on Twitter @AustinWSelf.

The North Carolina Education Lottery 200 (134 laps| 201 miles) is the eighth of 23 NASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck Series races on the 2019 schedule. Practice begins on Fri., May 17 from 9:05 a.m. – 9:55 p.m. A final practice session is set for 10:35 a.m. – 11:25 p.m. Qualifying is set for later in the day beginning at 4:35 p.m. The 32-truck field will take the green flag shortly after 8:30 p.m. with live coverage on FOX Sports 1 (FS1), the Motor Racing Network (Radio) and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio (Satellite Radio, Channel 90). All times are local (Eastern).